Nuclear Engineer

Nuclear engineers develop the methods, instruments, and systems to harness the power of nuclear energy and radiation. They may work in any area of the nuclear power cycle from production and transport of fuel, to operation and monitoring of nuclear power stations, to disposal and containment of nuclear waste. They may also work on improving specialized medical imaging techniques.

Education

Nuclear engineers need a bachelor's degree. Most have nuclear engineering degrees, but some may have advanced degrees in nuclear physics.

Lifestyle

While there are some risks to working with radioactive material, there are excellent safety procedures to minimize those risks. Most nuclear engineers work a standard 40-hour week, although some projects or jobs may require different hours or overtime to meet deadlines.

Salary

The average annual salary for an entry-level nuclear engineer $68,666.*

Examples

Design nuclear power systems for spacecraft.

Develop medical or industrial uses for radioactive materials.

Inspect and evaluate nuclear power plant, including those aboard ships or submarines.

I don’t have an office. I have a desk in the middle of the control room, which is a very large room with each corner of the room, having the required monitoring panels to control a nuclear reactor unit.

For me, the important thing is to be true to myself, try to make things better and to have fun in my job. That is both my short term and long term goal. Exactly how I do that is less important. I haven’t followed the "standard" career path. At some point, I will be eligible to retire from my current job, but I am looking at that as an opportunity to go and do something different.

The Experimental Breeder Reactor-1 was the first facility to produce electricity generated by nuclear energy. The EBR-1 produced the first usable electricity generated by atomic energy. The EBR-1 supplied all of the power for its own building. Three years after it was decommissioned, President Johnson dedicated the facility as a registered National Historic Landmark. The nearby city of Arco, Idaho became the first city in the world to be lit by nuclear power.

Herbert Hoover and Jimmy Carter, both U.S. Presidents, had engineering backgrounds. Herbert Hoover, the United States 31st President, studied mining engineering at Stanford University, graduating in 1895. Jimmy Carter, the 39th U.S. President , attended Georgia Tech and the United States Naval Academy, from which he graduated in 1946. Carter served in the Navy for 10 years as an engineer working with nuclear-powered submarines.

The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI), headquartered in Reston, Va., is a nonprofit scientific and professional organization that promotes the science, technology and practical application of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging. SNMMI strives to be a leader in unifying, advancing and optimizing molecular imaging, with an ultimate goal of improving human health.

Nuclear Energy Learning Resources has been developed by Argonne's Nuclear Engineering Division Student Outreach Committee. It is a service for middle school and high school students, their parents and teachers at home and at school and includes a list of resources to learn about nuclear energy topics selected for you by the Nuclear Engineering Division of Argonne National Laboratory. The site will help you to find information on how nuclear reactors work, what makes certain materials radioactive, the importance of nuclear energy in the 21st century, and many other nuclear energy topics.

Hey Ms. Engineer,
I've been really confused lately as to which type of Engineer I should become. On one hand, I love chemistry and chemical engineering pays quite well, but when I go through job descriptions it sounds like we only work with boring ...